Investigators: SC jailer asleep when inmate hanged

LANCASTER, S.C. (AP) — Investigators have determined a jail officer was asleep when a man hanged himself in the Lancaster County jail earlier this year.

Investigators determined that the officer falsified jail records to show she had performed routine checks on inmates, the Herald of Rock Hill (http://bit.ly/1qb7P1h ) reported.

The officer and her supervisor were fired as part of the investigation of the death of 44-year-old Randy William Stevens on May 20. Stevens had been arrested on a disorderly conduct charge May 19.

The investigation determined the officer on duty slept for two hours with headphones on her ears.

Her supervisor was fired because she ignored the employee's sleeping on the job, left work for an hour without permission and failed to make sure officers were checking on inmates.

Three other officers were suspended without pay for three days.

The names of all five jail employees are on a sheet officers used to record that they had checked on Stevens every 30 minutes on May 20. Because he was listed as drunk and violent, Stevens was considered a "special needs inmate," according to jail policy, which state that he should have been checked every 15 minutes.

The sheriff's investigation concluded the officer and her supervisor violated jail policy but did not contribute to Stevens' death.

Through his attorney, Sheriff Barry Faile would not talk about the report "due to the potential for litigation in the future."